Eleventh Meeting: Standing Group of Experts on African Swine Fever

Regional GF-TADs: Eleventh Meeting of the Standing Group of Experts on African Swine Fever for Asia and the Pacific

Background

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly fatal hemorrhagic disease that affects domestic and wild pigs of all ages. ASF has caused immense economic losses, disrupted the pork supply chain, and threatens food security in many countries in the region. Since the first ASF outbreak in China in August 2018, a total of 20 countries has reported ASF (as of July 2026). Now, the region is managing ASF as an endemic disease and is trying to minimize the impacts of ASF on livelihoods and food security.  

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) are working together to strengthen regional collaboration to tackle ASF. A Standing Group of Experts on ASF (SGE-ASF) for Asia and the Pacific was founded in April 2019 under the Global Framework for the Progressive Control of Transboundary Animal Diseases (GF-TADs) umbrella to promote the regular exchange of information and documentation of best practices.  

The Tenth SGE ASF Meeting for Asia and the Pacific was held in Bangkok, Thailand from 10 to 12 June 2025 and highlighted alternatives to traditional ASF control and prevention strategies and explored how to adapt and scale up best practices on risk communication and community engagement models to support alternative ASF control strategies. The eleventh meeting will be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea from 11 to 13 August 2026.

Objectives

The meeting will delve into recent developments in the Global Initiative on ASF and will feature sessions on ASF policy and legislation, evaluation of ASF control policies and biosecurity measures, business continuity, and assessment of the economic impact and cost–benefit analysis of ASF control. Based on recommendations of the previous meetings, the programme will also cover updates on the WOAH Vaccine Standards and the Guidelines for Field Evaluation of ASF Vaccines and Post-vaccination Monitoring.

The specific objectives of this meeting are to:

• Review progress in implementing recommendations from the previous SGE ASF meeting and examine current epidemiological trends;
• Present the next phase of the and discuss its regional implementation, highlighting lessons learned and best practices from the earlier phase;
• WOAH ASF vaccine standards, development of guidelines on ASF vaccine field evaluation and post vaccination monitoring, and information on implementation and piloting of ASF vaccines in the region;
• Strengthen regional coordination and information sharing and promote the consistent application of best practices and WOAH standards;
• To review progress on the ASEAN Sub-Regional ASF Strategy and explore the potential for developing similar strategies in other Asia-Pacific sub-regions.

Details

Dates: 11 – 13 August 2026

Agenda: (to be updated)

Recommendations: (to be updated)

Photo Album: (to be updated)

Venue: Seoul, Republic of Korea

Participation: By invitation